1982-83 Sitcom Scorecard -- Cheers Is Nearly Cancelled

As promised, TVRG has been actively searching archives to give readers missing years of data in television history. And now, the illusive 1982-83 data has been located! Now, TVRG has contiguous sitcom coverage from 1981-2017, and several outliers in the prior decades. Only ranks are available for most shows beyond 33rd place, but the ranks help paint a precise picture of what went on this season.

Longtime favorites such as Laverne and Shirley, as well as MASH and All in the Family spinoff Archie Bunker's Place left the air after lengthy runs, leaving multiple holes in the schedule. After multiple years of failure in 3rd Place, NBC devised a plan of saturating its lineup with laughs. 7 of the 10 shows survived (and barely), the highest number among any network as only 16 of the 39 sitcoms displayed this season made it to the 1983-84 season. CBS cancelled the highest number of top-30 players, with 5 of their 15 shows surviving. And ABC's luck followed a similar traectory, with only 4 of its 14 shows being renewed.

Please note three additional installments for Historic Sitcom Scorecards are planned for this year -- 1975-76, 1979-80 and 2017-18, bringing the total to 46 years of sitcom data to report.

Several shows bit the dust this season, several of which had runs of 5+ years. Among them, Archie Bunker's Place (4 seasons in title, 13 with Carroll O'Connor's household name headlining), MASH (11 seasons), Laverne and Shirley (8 seasons) and Taxi (5 seasons), which faltered after jumping from ABC to NBC this season. This chart also features several players which eventually revived in syndication -- Mama's Family (cancelled the next season, revived in syndication from 1986-90), Silver Spoons (cancelled in 1986, revived for one more season in syndication) and 9 to 5 (Cancelled later in 1983, revived in syndication from 1986-88).

Where the 1982-83 season was a pioneer year was NBC's investments in sitcoms which ultimately saved the network in 1984. The Facts of Life was picking up momentum in its 4th season, while parent Diff'rent Strokes showed signs of aging. And reviving Taxi from ABC did not ignite the fire NBC desired. However, the fortunes lay in the new pilots -- Silver Spoons, Family Ties and Cheers. Silver Spoons made an ideal show to shuffle around the schedule, while Family Ties and Cheers helped ignite a powerhouse comedy block on Thursdays, Must-See-TV.